This week was TIPI training again. The practice is new in the United States, so it still goes by its French acronym. But the name, TIPI, doesn’t quite appeal to Americans. Who wants to say a name that brings memories of toilet paper bombing? I’ve come up with a different acronym: EDIT, or Emotional Difficulty Identification Technique. From now on, I will write about EDIT, though it is the same as Luc Nicon’s TIPI.
After my EDIT session on Sunday at the supermarket, I noticed that I had an appetite. Or actually noticed I had not had an appetite for weeks as September approached. It was intriguing wondering how I would feel on this anniversary.
The morning was like any other morning, though a little more melancholy. It felt like any other anniversary of a sad event. It wasn’t depressing or anxiety-ridden. I went to EDIT training, enjoyed a last class gathering with one of our classmates who will return to her country, and then therapy. As the day progressed, I looked for patriotic symbols aside from the usual flags at post offices and schools. There were none. San Francisco city hall was lit red and white, but not blue — for America’s Cup, not America. Shame on you, Mayor Lee.
I wondered if I would have cried at the sight of a September 11 memorial. I couldn’t have known without watching whatever news reported it since there were no memorials in San Francisco, at least none that I knew of. But I don’t own a TV and don’t have Internet aside from my phone, which connects too slowly for me without the patience for it. My friend from New York who moved here 8 years ago had a hard day and got fired for mourning our nation’s tragedy.
This morning I looked up some news on the web on my phone. There was one 9-11 headline among the first ten that appeared. It was by the BBC.
So much for patriotism.
I still love the USA.